Biomedical Engineer
By: Henry Garcia
Job Description
Biomedical engineers use engineering principles with medical sciences to design and create equipment, devices, computer systems, and software used in healthcare. It's a branch of both the Science and Engineering aspects of STEM, and it's one of the most important in healthcare.
Location
Workers in this field usually work in manufacturing companies, universities, hospitals, and research facilities of private companies. Some of the most popular spots to find biomedical engineers include Minneapolis, Minnesota, Boston, Massachusetts, and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Boston, Massachusetts
Philladelphia, Pennsylvania
Salary
The salary of biomedical engineers usually ranges from $51,050 to $134,620 a year, but the average salary for most in the U.S. is $85,620. The median can go up in different part of the U.S, however; for example, the average a biomedical engineer earns is $101,710.
Degree Level
A bachelor's degree is usually required to become a biomedical engineer, but some jobs even offer jobs to people with undergraduates degrees.
College Major
Biomedical engineers are typically required to finish a course in engineering during their high school years since, obviously, basic engineering skills are required to become a biomedical engineer. Some students may also want to take a healthcare course so that they could specialize in that field in their near future.
Working Conditions
Work environments in the biomedical engineering branch usually involve labs, or hospitals. They can also be universities. Working conditions aren't usually harsh, and typically require the engineer to stay in a place for a long time, either researching or implementing his knowledge into actually creating prosthetics or artificial limbs. They usually have normal working hours, and they collaborate with other biomedical engineers to accomplish goals.
Other Interesting/ Important Facts
- In 1993, the first bionic arm, which consisted of motors, pulleys and electronic equipment was created.
- In 1998, amputees could actually use the prosthesis, since engineers had found how to translate brain impulses into movement inputs.
- Biomedical engineers have been responsible for creating most artificial limbs, and they are also responsible for creating artificial organs.
- These organs include kidneys, or even hearts.
- Biomedical engineers have also been able to modify bacteria to act as vaccines to help combat diseases.